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Aug 30, 2014; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Padres former closer Trevor Hoffman acknowledges the crowd during his Padres Hall of Fame induction ceremony as his wife Tracy (left, background) looks on at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

Trevor Hoffman

The 6’1″ righty from Bellflower, California played sixteen years for the San Diego Padres, imposing his will over opposing lineups for a team who never seemed to get on track. They only made the playoffs four times, often with quick exits, except the World Series run in 1998, losing to the Yankees. Hoffman recorded 601 saves for his career, 552 of them with the Padres.

At 40, much like Eckersley, Hoffman’s strikeout totals were on the decline. He made 30 saves in 34 opportunities in his last season with San Diego, but only struck out 46 batters with a fastball velocity tapping out at 87 mph on a good day (FanGraphs.com).

As he was making over $7 million a season on a bad team, it was not unexpected to see Hoffman dawning a new uniform in his last days. The next year, Hoffman went to the Milwaukee Brewers, picking up another All-Star nod to add to his six previous appearances. He earned 37 saves in 41 attempts, while only posting a 1.87 ERA. That was a far cry from the 5.89 ERA Hoffman posted the following year, while his fastball severely dropped to under 85 mph and, subsequently, he retired in 2010.